Strawberry Triangles
by ThisAccountIsNowInactive354085
Summary: Shizuma decides to play matchmaker to get Tamao to let go of Nagisa, but what happens when everything doesn't go quite as she'd planned? Various pairings.
1. Prologue

**Okay, this is an experimental story- I'm kinda known for writing for strange or rare pairings, as some of you might have noticed if you've looked at my profile. I noticed my last story has stopped being so popular so I'm going to try to move on to a new idea. Don't worry, the pairings won't be TOO out there, and everyone will be at least somewhat compatible. **

**Storyline: Shizuma's invited everyone to a family owned cabin up in the mountains. Normally this would be an innocent attempt at friendship, but Shizuma can never leave things as they are, and has a plan up her sleeve. Only, everything doesn't go quite as she planned it, especially when her flirtatious cousin apparently had the same idea as hers and invited some of **_**his **_**friends…**

**Strawberry Triangles**

**Prologue: The Perfect Plan**

**Disclaimer: Nothing's mine but the plot!**

A certain silver-haired girl scowled unabashedly at the blue-haired girl currently doting over _her _girlfriend. She knew of Tamao's feelings for Nagisa- sympathized, even, but certainly not enough to put up with her clinging to the red-head.

But unlike the current Etoile, Nagisa seemed intent on being there for her friend, despite her feelings for her, and Shizuma couldn't begin to imagine upsetting her Nagisa-chan. Therefore, it was time to move on to Plan B, or 'find the angsty poet a new girl to obsess over so she forgets about her feelings for _my _girlfriend,' as Shizuma affectionately referred to it as. And she believed she had the perfect person as well as the perfect place for it to happen.

"Mi-yu-kiii," she sang, her eyes trailing over to where her friend sat stiffly in an armchair, deliberately ignoring the scene before her. "Mi-YU-"

"_What_," Miyuki snapped, her eyes meeting Shizuma's, the mocha irises brimming with annoyance, "is it, Shizuma?"

Shizuma huffed in mock hurt before scooting a little bit closer to her friend, although, the way things were going now, she doubted Nagisa and Tamao would hear her anyway. "Am I not allowed to want to talk to my best friend for no reason?" she asked, and Miyuki rolled her eyes.

"You're allowed, Shizuma," she said, "but that doesn't mean you do. So I'll ask again- what is it that you want?"

Shizuma's lips curled into a smirk. "Ah, you caught me," she said lightly. "I want to organize a trip."

Miyuki raised an eyebrow. "A trip?" she asked. "In the middle of November? It's not as if I don't expect you to abuse your power by now, but isn't it a little…unorthodox?"

"Since when have I been, how you say…orthodox?" Shizuma asked, a cocky little smile tugging at the corners of her lips, the one she knew Miyuki couldn't resist. She wasn't stupid, despite popular belief, and she knew of Miyuki's feelings for her- okay, so maybe Chikaru might have let something slip. But still. She knew Miyuki's weaknesses and she wasn't afraid to use them. "Just live a little, Miyuki," she said. "We'll invite everyone- who knows what might happen?" She embellished her ploy with an exaggerated wink.

"And who's everyone, Shizuma?" Miyuki asked tiredly. Shizuma's grin widened- she knew she'd won.

The previous Etoile shrugged. "Just…everyone. Chikaru, definitely, because it'd be no fun without her…Shion, too, because she's fun to mess with and I think she has a thing for someone, though I'm not sure who…," she trailed off, looking off to the side for a moment as Miyuki rolled her eyes a second time. Shizuma had to be the densest- well, second densest, she couldn't forget Nanto-san- girl alive. Speaking of which… "Yaya-chan and her pet Tsundere," Shizuma continued in a decisive tone. "Their sexual tension is suffocating- it's better than daytime television."

Miyuki frowned, noticing something odd about where Shizuma seemed to be heading with this. "Shizuma…," she began warily, "you're not trying to play matchmaker, are you?"

Shizuma scoffed. "Please, Miyuki," she stated in a patronizing tone, "I'm not working with anything that isn't already _there_. And I'm bloody_ tired_ of Suzumi trailing after _my _Nagisa-chan looking like someone kicked her puppy to death."

Miyuki raised an eyebrow. "You didn't even mention her."

Shizuma adopted a feral grin. "And that, my dear, darlingest Miyuki, is where _you _come in," she said with a suggestive wiggle of her eyebrows. Miyuki groaned. "What?" Shizuma asked, honestly confused. "Suzumi's hot- if she wasn't after my Nagisa-chan, I'd-"

"Yes, yes, Shizuma, I think the world knows what you'd do," Miyuki stated tiredly. "But I don't have feelings for Suzumi-san."

"Don't or can't?" Shizuma asked petulantly, causing Miyuki to sigh. "I'm getting tired of your 'can't and won't' attitude. There's other options out there, Yuki-chan."

"And Suzumi-san isn't one of them," Miyuki replied sharply, unwittingly calling the attention of the two younger girls in the room.

"I'm not one of what, Rokujou-san?" Tamao asked, her eyebrows crinkled in slight concern. Miyuki gave the girl a mild smile to assure her that everything was alright- Tamao was cute, sweet, and loving, but she wasn't what Miyuki needed.

"Nothing, Suzumi-san," she said lightly. "Shizuma was just talking about another of her insane schemes."

"_Anyway,_" Shizuma said loudly, calling attention back to herself. "Obviously we would invite Suzumi and my Nagisa-chan." Tamao winced slightly Shizuma's harsh pronunciation of her name, but didn't give the older girl the satisfaction of seeing her reaction. "Amane and Hikari, Kaname and Momomi…"

A pained expression appeared on Miyuki's face. It was bad enough that the Spicans who were constantly at each other's throats were coming along, but now… She sighed, resigning herself to her fate. "So how are we going to get there?"

**PGBR**

"I can't believe we're going up to the mountains in _November_," a small pinkette grumbled, her arms folded tightly over her chest. She was wearing her usual sweater, but she was also quite small, and therefore affected quite badly by the cold. Beside her stood a giant suitcase that was at least half her size- it was a miracle she'd gotten it outside of the school.

"Stop complaining, Tsu-bo-mi-chaaan," a husky voice crooned from behind her, and seconds later the pinkette was enveloped in a crushing warmth. "It's a vacation from school, and Shizuma-sama's house will be heated, ne?"

Tsubomi grumbled under her breath, her face rapidly developing a tell-tale pink hue. "Like you need a vacation from school," she muttered to cover her embarrassment. "It's not like you ever go anyway."

"Aww, does my Tsubomi-chan miss me when I'm not there?"

"Baka!" Tsubomi snapped, shoving Yaya off of her and taking a wide step to her right, positioning her suitcase between the two of them. A shiver ran down her spine as she felt the full effects of the cold- Yaya's body heat had warmed her up considerably, and now the cold was a hundred times worse. "And I'm not _your _Tsubomi-chan," she added belatedly, flushing crimson.

Beside her, the tall brunette's lips parted in a wide smile just before she worked up a slew of real tears as Hikari ran up beside the two girls, Amane trailing behind her. "Yaya-chan?" Hikari asked, instantly concerned. "What's wrong?"

Tsubomi straightened, turning to face Yaya, her heart dropping for the longest moment before… "My Tsubomi-chan doesn't love me anymore," Yaya sniffed, and the pinkette detected the playful glint beneath the fake sorrow.

She growled and stomped on Yaya's foot with all her might, scowling when Yaya only turned to her with a grin. "Baka!" she shouted again, grabbing her suitcase and attempting to storm off as the bus Shizuma had rented rolled up. Only, the suitcase weighed almost as much as she did, so it was more like hobbling than storming. She squeaked in shock when a warm hand met with her own and the weight disappeared; Tsubomi glanced up to catch Yaya giving her a wink, Tsubomi's bag balanced in one hand, her own in the other as she handed them to the loader. For a few seconds, Tsubomi's mouth flapped like a fish out of water as she tried to come up with something to say before she eventually gave an irritated growl and stomped into the bus, leaving a grinning Yaya watching after her.

**PGBR**

"No means no, Kaname!" Momomi snapped, jerking her lover's chin so that she was facing her. "This is supposed to be a vacation- no more 'rivalries' with Otori-san."

Kaname scoffed. "If it bothers you so much, why did you come back to me?" she drawled, raising an eyebrow as Momomi's eyes brimmed with tears. "Geez, Momomi…I don't have feelings for that stupid Otori-san."

It was Momomi's turn to huff this time as she folded her arms over her chest. "Really?" she asked, her voice brimming with disbelief. "You think that little of me? I was _there _at the tennis match, Kaname. I was there…cheering for you, wishing you the best…and then…" Her eyes hardened as she raised her head again. A month ago, perhaps she would have looked into those narrowed eyes and seen something there to make her want to stay- to make all the heartbreak worth it in the end. But there was nothing but spite and petty jealousies now.

And what was it worth, in the end? Was it so worth it to keep hurting herself with this relationship when she didn't love Kaname anymore? Was it worth it, just to keep from wearing the same mask she'd seen Nanto-san wearing every day before the pink-haired loli decided to be her rock?

"She's right, you know," Shion said offhandedly, her violet gaze riveted onto the group of girls before her. Momomi followed her gaze, trying to see just who Shion had been watching for the past few months, but the group was too tightly knit.

"Shut up, Shion," Kaname snapped, her lips curling into a sneer. Shion only raised an eyebrow, never taking her eyes off of…whoever it was.

**PGBR**

A few minutes later found everyone on the bus in more-or-less predictable pairs. This was greatly distressing to a certain bluenette, who had been trying to ignore the fact that the girl she loved was deeply in love with a girl who would, most likely, break her heart.

"Ara," came a soft voice from the seat beside her. Tamao turned to face a gently smiling Le Rim president. "I don't think glaring at Shizuma-san will help much," Chikaru noted, oblivious to Tamao's uncharacteristic huff. "Perhaps you shouldn't try so hard to make Nagisa-chan think you're alright if it's hurting you so much to pretend." Chikaru smiled sadly- seeing the bluenette so upset hurt her as well- she had a hard time believing that this miserable girl beside her was the same girl who had been devastated to learn that she would not be receiving a roommate after all. She wondered if Tamao ever wished she'd never gotten one.

"It would hurt my Nagisa-chan worse if I didn't," Tamao said with a spark of something in her violet eyes that Chikaru finally recognized as a part of her old self. She'd known the bluenette since grade school, even if they hadn't been anything more than acquaintances for most of that time. "She doesn't even know what she's doing."

Tamao's eyes flickered involuntarily to her left- Yaya was leaning back against the plush seat, her earbuds in and her feet resting against the back of the chair in front of her. She felt a small, disembodied twinge of jealousy as her gaze shifted to the pinkette beside Yaya, who was looking up at the girl with absolute adoration, safe in the knowledge that the brunette's eyes were closed. What would it be like, she wondered, to be on the receiving end of such affection instead of merely handing it out?

She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't notice a certain brunette watching her with a strangely similar expression.

So what do you guys think? Should I continue or quit while I'm ahead?


	2. One: Arrangements

**Okay, so I've decided to screw whatever that rule was about not replying- I feel bad only replying to direct questions since all of you took time to review my story.**

**BrosephStalin: Thanks =) One of my biggest concerns is always whether I'm in character or not.**

**MalokaiKuhlua: If I haven't posted the new chapter by now, I am working on it, at least to the point where Miyuki's fiancé turns up, since it felt weird leaving off there =P**

**Huggler: Thank you! And I have to thank my mom for the skills I have today- it's obvious that schools don't teach enough about fiction writing and style given some fanfiction that I've read. The only reason my grammar is a high point is because she was so adamant on teaching me. Probably the only good part about having two English majors for parents xD Guess what my major's going to be this fall? xD Tamao is actually one of my favorite characters for this story. She'll be going through some interesting things…**

**Stavri: We talked over messaging, but I wanted to say that I've decided her cousin will be the only other person coming, though there might be mention of other boys, and that I'll probably build on the plot we discussed over messaging.**

**Hazel Liebovsky: On Astraea Hill- I felt like I messed up the entire storyline with the last chapter, so I'm not sure…I probably won't update unless I get smacked in the face with some serious inspiration. I hate leaving fics unfinished but too often I lose motivation. As for your question on Shizuma/Chikaru…it's my personal opinion that Shizuma doesn't deserve Chikaru. Not that any of the characters really do, but I always thought Shizuma could be quite cruel. Such as when she kissed Miyuki- I was and still am under the impression that she knew how Miyuki felt for her. Yes, she has every right to not be over Kaori, but she needs to learn that just because she's heartbroken doesn't mean she has to break everyone else's heart. I can see how Chikaru could 'save' Shizuma, but overall, I think Chikaru deserves someone who wouldn't put her through that pain, because she's not invincible. Again, it's my opinion, so I don't mean to offend ANYONE by it. Also, something I wanted to comment on- your English is fine. I've actually noticed that people on this site who admit that English is not their first language actually write a hundred times better than people whose first language it is. It's sad, how people can be so oblivious to the rules of their own language, but it's true.**

**GoddessShizu: Well, I've got this next chapter out, so I'll try my best =)**

**I might not be updating as frequently because I've just started posting a Maria-sama Ga Miteru fanfiction here for the first time in what feels like forever. I got tired of "Sachiko-**_**oneeeeesama!**_" **and was frustrated at the fandom for a while before I remembered- if you want to change something, you have to do it yourself. Time for shameless advertising of my favorite couples- ShimakoxNoriko FTW! They're just too adorable together! And I've decided that Touko deserves Yumi much more than Sachiko. If any of you have ever watched Marimite, Season 4, you've seen how she changed, and I feel that all Sachiko really does is make Yumi upset, whereas Touko, once Yumi earned her trust, I believe would do anything to make her happy.**

**If you could, tell me if I'm doing Momomi's character justice? I've never written for a character like Momomi before.**

**ON TO THE FICCY!**

**Strawberry Triangles**

**One: Arrangements**

**Disclaimer: Nothing's mine but the plot!**

_Come on, baka, like she's going to care, the way she's always hanging off of you._

_**Shut UP.**_

___You're just pissy because you're too scared to make a move, even though she does the same kinds of things all the damn time._

Tsubomi growled at the voice inside her head- why was it going on like that, anyway? Shouldn't she be in control of all her thoughts?

_Then again…_

She glanced at the girl next to her- Yaya's eyes were closed and Tsubomi could just barely make out the beat of the song that was playing on the brunette's iPod. She almost never got to see Yaya like this: innocent and expressionless. And the urge to close the miniscule space between them and cuddle into Yaya's shoulder under the pretense of being asleep was overpowering.

"Something on my face, Tsu-bo-mi-chan?" Tsubomi started at the sudden noise beside her, jumping and hitting her head against the window. Yaya grinned. "Or am I just that sexy?"

"Shut up, baka," she muttered, rubbing her head and pretending she didn't know her face probably matched her hair right about now. Yaya grinned.

"That's no way to talk to your senpai, now is it, Tsubomi-chaaan?" she cooed, invading Tsubomi's personal space so that she was about an inch from the pinkette's ear. "You should learn some respect." Tsubomi grumbled, and Yaya laughed, her breath warm against Tsubomi's cheek, causing the pinkette to darken even further. Seeing this, the brunette leaned over just a tiny bit more and pressed a kiss to the very red shell of her ear before thrusting an arm lazily over Tsubomi's shoulders.

The pinkette's eyes widened as she felt the unmistakable pressure of a kiss and the warm, heavy weight of Yaya's arm over her shoulder. "Let go, baka!" she snapped on reflex, instantly regretting her words. She didn't want Yaya to let go- she wanted to stay in Yaya's arms forever. And if Yaya let go of her, she might cling to someone else and…Tsubomi shivered at the thought.

But Yaya didn't let go- she just pulled Tsubomi closer and pressed her lips to the top of her head, running her hand down the pinkette's arms. "You should just give up, Tsubomi-chan," she said with a smirk, feeling the younger girl's struggle weakening.

"Hmph!"

Yaya laughed loudly at Tsubomi's petulant huff, tightening her arm around the pinkette, ignoring the small part of her brain that asked her if maybe she was enjoying the feeling of Tsubomi in her arms a little too much.

**PGBR**

Momomi leaned back in her seat, arms folded over her chest and one leg crossed over the other as her deceptively wide eyes took in the scene, analyzing every last detail.

First there was Shizuma and her latest conquest- they didn't interest Momomi enough for her to truly dissect their relationship, but even if they had, everything was so on the surface that it could be summed up in one word. _Cliché. _

Not-so-cliché was the girl who should have been- the bluenette who played the mandatory part of the overlooked lover. She should be bitter, spiteful, and plotting. Cunning, conniving, and willing to do whatever it took to break them apart. But what Momomi thought she should be seeing and what she saw were two entirely different things. Tamao adored Nagisa- so much was obvious, even to that daft Nanto-san. But Momomi couldn't detect a trace of bitterness in the girl's entire being- and on top of that, Chikaru, who was sitting beside her at the moment, seemed quite fond of her. And everyone knew that Chikaru's intuition was always, _always _right. Momomi took one last look at the fated love triangle- Shizuma had an arm draped possessively over an oblivious Nagisa's shoulder, while Tamao smiled sadly and pretended not to see the smirk the ex-Etoile sent her way. Briefly, Momomi relived the moment when she realized that her Kana-chan didn't love her, and the way she would have reacted if Kaname had gotten together with that horse-loving Amane right under her nose.

_For a poet, she's not so smart._

But if you really wanted pathetic, you'd focus your gaze on the tiny tsundere and the girl who masked her true emotions behind a lion's grin. It didn't take a rocket scientist to read the pure adoration in Tsubomi's eyes when she looked up at her Yaya-senpai when she thought the other wasn't looking. No, that's not what was so sad.

Yaya-chan was a favorite subject for Momomi, simply because of how unnecessarily complex this girl had to make every little before she was smacked upside the head by the truth. As a playful, flirtatious girl, she was the ultimate irony. First, there was that whiny Hikari, who Yaya had purposefully pushed towards her Amane-_senpai _before turning tail at the last second and deciding she wanted Hikari for herself. And now with the pink-haired midget…it was a little harder to detect than the utmost adoration that Momomi saw reflected in the pinkette's eyes, but Yaya certainly wasn't a master when it came to hiding her feelings. She saw the way Yaya looked at Tsubomi when she wasn't looking- with a mixture of love and fear, and there was always a brief flash of terror, as if she was reliving that night over and over again.

What Momomi saw was a girl who was so terrified of showing that she had emotions beneath all the teasing that she would ruin any and every relationship she ever had by pushing her loved ones away only to realize she couldn't go through with it in the end.

She was a coward beneath all the grinning and goading and fearless façades, and perhaps that was what made her so interesting. A coward who was afraid to be named as such and therefore hid from the world. Her lips curled into a slight smirk. How would she ever find true love if she was afraid to let go of the unhealthy, immobile relationship she imagined herself in with Hikari?

Momomi's lips parted slowly, as if she had just found a very simple solution to a math problem she'd spent hours working on.

"Kana-chan?"

"Hmm?" Kaname mumbled, not looking up from her 'observation' of Amane.

"We're done."

**PGBR**

Tamao blinked several times, fighting back the instant headache that came from the sun hidden behind the gray clouds. It took her a moment to realize her surroundings, but when she did, she snapped up into an upright position before bending over and holding her aching head. "I'm sorry, Minamoto-san," she said as she sat up, blushing profusely after having realized that she'd been sleeping against the girl's shoulder for the past hour.

Chikaru just smiled enigmatically. "I don't mind," she said lightly, "as long as you call me Chikaru, hmm?"

If possible, Tamao's blush deepened. "Hai…Chikaru-sama," she said, her gaze shifting towards the two girls across from her. Immediately she wished she hadn't looked- Shizuma was sitting lazily in her seat while Nagisa was curled up in her lap like a sleeping kitten. Judging from Tamao's recent position with Chikaru, that was just yet another reason that she and Nagisa weren't compatible. She couldn't be strong like her Nagisa-chan needed.

Chikaru smiled at the use of her name. "Perhaps if you tried to stop thinking about Nagisa-chan for a moment…?"

Tamao sighed. "I wish I could," she said, watching the two girls with sad eyes. Her mood did lighten slightly when her eyes flickered to Yaya and Tsubomi for a moment and she caught them in a similar position, with the sleeping Tsubomi's arms tight around Yaya's waist, her head pressed against the older girl's chest while Yaya had an arm wrapped lazily around her tiny waist and a very smug smile pasted across her features. "She'd have a heart attack if she knew she was doing that," Tamao said with a gentle smile, referring to the slumbering pinkette. Then she paused for a moment, her eyes furrowing in thought. "Then again, knowing Yaya-chan, she'll never let Tsubomi-chan live this one down."

"People can surprise you, Tamao-chan," Chikaru said softly from the seat beside her, smiling sweetly when Tamao turned to face her with a confused expression. She scooted closer to the younger girl, whose breath hitched with the sudden contact, and took hold of her shoulders. "Watch Yaya-chan's expression carefully," she whispered, her breath warm against Tamao's ear. The younger girl tried to do as Chikaru told her, but the sensation of the older girl's warm body pressed against her was very distracting.

_No- not again, Tamao-chan._

Seemingly oblivious to Tamao's internal debate, Chikaru tightened her hold on the bluenette's shoulders. "There," she whispered, and Tamao watched in awe as Yaya opened her eyes for a moment and glanced down at the pinkette draped over her. The brunette reached down to carefully brush a stray hair from the younger girl's face, allowing her fingers to linger for just a second too long before her arm relaxed around Tsubomi's waist again. "Somehow, I think Yaya-chan will keep this to herself, at least for now." The Le Rim president paused for a second, her arms wrapped gently around the bluenette before slowly pulling away, running her hands along Tamao's sleeve as she went.

From the back of the bus, a pair of violet eyes flashed green.

**PGBR**

_So that's who it is_, Miyuki thought mildly, watching her Spican counterpart glare daggers at the poor, innocent Tamao-chan. Out loud, she said, "Careful you don't melt the wrong girl, Tomori-san."

Shion jumped about a foot in the air, and Miyuki hid a smirk behind her hand that had been supporting her chin. It would never get old, this business of teasing the Spica-kaichou. "You don't know what you're talking about, Rokujou-san," Shion muttered, though her cheeks were quickly turning red.

"Hmm," Miyuki hummed with indifference. "Whatever you say, kaichou."

Shion grumbled under her breath, folding her arms over her chest, and continued to glare at Tamao.

**PGBR**

"Go 'way," Tsubomi muttered, batting clumsily at the sensation pressing against her cheek. "I'm sleeping."

A tell-tale giggle greeted her, and suddenly the pinkette was wide awake, leaping away from Yaya only to almost fall to the ground because she was so entangled with the older girl. But the brunette caught her easily and pulled her back into a sitting position. "Who knew Tsubomi-chan was such a cuddler," she murmured thoughtfully, her eyes flashing mischievously as she glanced at Tsubomi out of the corner of her eye. "I'd better be careful around her…"

Tsubomi scoffed despite the growing red tint staining her cheeks. "That's rich, coming from you, hentai," the pinkette muttered with a scowl. Yaya grinned and poked her puffed-out cheek.

"Gather 'round, everyone!" Shizuma called from a few feet away, causing Miyuki to shoot her an annoyed glare. "We're going to have to pair up in groups of two for sleeping arrangements."

"She only says that because she wants to sleep with her Nagisa-chan," Tsubomi muttered under her breath, squealing when Yaya thrust an arm over her shoulder.

"I call Tsundere-chan!" the brunette yelled with a wide smile, barely wincing when Tsubomi smacked her upside the head.

"Baka! I didn't agree to this!"

"You don't have to," Yaya said with a grin, ruffling her pink hair. "I have seniority."

Tsubomi scoffed, but said nothing else, figuring that this was better than Yaya sharing a room with Hikari.

"Right," Shizuma said, "Well then, it'll be me and Nagisa, Yaya and Tsubomi, Kaname and-" She paused, a shiver rushing down her chest right as she was about to say Momomi. The girl in question was looking at her with a feral grin, almost daring her to pair them up together. "Um…Miyuki," Shizuma hedged, not wanting to mess up any of her other pairings. Miyuki and Kaname scowled, and Momomi smirked. "Then…Momomi with Tamao and Chikaru with Shion. Everyone happy? Good. Go find a room or whatever, and don't bother me for the next two hours."


End file.
